Facing Evil

by C L Hart

  “Abby, this is serious!”

  “You think I don’t know that?” she shot back.

  “Then you also know we don’t have a lot of time, and I’m risking my neck here.” Banks pushed the file toward Abby. “When we arrived at Ward’s motel room, there was a significant amount of blood...”

  Abby was quickly scanning the documents in the file. “Blood and Billy seem to go hand in hand.”

  “This was his blood, and quite a bit of it.”

  “So, whoever killed him, did it there.” Abby flipped through the papers in the file. She finally read what her lieutenant and everyone else was getting at - the murder weapon.

  “Abby, we found your prints on the knife.”

  The door to the interrogation room opened and Lieutenant Banks turned around in annoyance as Detectives Webber and Ames walked in.

  Webber looked smugly at Abby. “According to the DA, that’s all we need. Abby Stanfield, you’re under arrest for the murder of William Daniel Ward.”

  Abby was read her rights, handcuffed, printed and photographed before she called her lawyer. Finally alone with her thoughts, Abby paced her cell and pondered the discovery of her fingerprints. She had read the reports for herself and there was no doubt, they were hers — on the knife that had killed Billy. But how?

  As Abby lay down on the metal bed, the realization hit home — Billy was dead! It was finally over. Looking up at the empty bunk above her, she tried to settle the rush of thoughts and memories in her mind. Billy was dead, Sarah was lying unconscious in the hospital, and she, herself, was locked up on murder charges because they had found her fingerprints at the scene of Billy’s death. She had no job, no home, her beloved dog was gone, and her life and reputation were in complete shambles.

  The ordeal of the day had exhausted her. As she draped an arm across her face to block out the dull light, she felt a great relief in knowing Billy was finally gone. The tension in her body unwound as the memories in her mind slowed down and Abby fell asleep.

  It wasn’t a restful sleep. It never was, as visions from her past tiptoed through her subconscious.

  ♥

  Nathan Holoman went down the stairs into the dark recesses of the police station. It had been a long time since he had been anywhere near a set of holding cells, but the circumstances required it. At one time he was the leading defense attorney in the state, until he decided life was too precious to spend all of it inside a courtroom. But Abby had called and he had come running.

  It had been a long time since he had heard from her — too long, he realized now. Life had gotten in the way and they hadn’t spoken in many years. Nathan often wondered if it had been on purpose or by accident.

  Stopping, he signed the admit book and then continued to his client. Peering into the dark shadows of her cell, he saw her on her bunk.

  “Abby,” he called, but there was no sign that she heard him. He watched her restless body tossing in sleep as he impatiently waited for the matron with the key. “Come on, woman. Open this door!” The overweight matron glared at the lawyer, but said nothing. Nathan had one hand on the bars and the other on his briefcase as he waited for the cell door to open. A low moan came from the bunk.

  “Abby! Abby, wake up!” The moment the door clicked, he pushed his way into the cell. With a gentle hand, he reached out and touched her shoulder. “Abby, wake up.”

  Her eyes flashed open and she quickly took in her surroundings and the man sitting on her bed. The relief was instantaneous as she wrapped her arms around him. “Nathan,” she whispered into his broad shoulder. Closing her eyes, she reveled in the comfort his strong embrace offered. Beneath the expensive suit was the firm figure of an athlete who may have passed his prime, but had not given up his sports.

  “It’s okay, dear,” he said as he held her. “It’s over,” he whispered into her hair. It had been a long time since he had held her like that, and it brought back memories. “I wish you’d called me sooner, Abby. There might’ve been more that I could’ve done.”

  She pulled out of his embrace and looked into his dark brown eyes. “Like what? You’re a lawyer, Nathan, not a miracle worker.” She took a deep cleansing breath and ran her fingers through her hair.

  “Well, let’s see if I can perform a miracle and get you out of this cell.”

  ♥

  There was a quick rap on the door of the interrogation room and Lieutenant Banks walked in. A bright smile lit up her face when she saw Nathan. “Nathan Holoman, I heard you were down here.”

  “Mary.” He inclined his head in recognition.

  Abby was surprised to see the reaction from her normally impassive boss.

  “So, money does buy the best, doesn’t it?” Mary Banks teased Nathan with a suspiciously coy wink.

  “It can,” said Nathan as he walked around to stand behind Abby’s chair. “But it wasn’t money that got me down here, was it?”

  Abby looked up from her thoughts. “Lieutenant Banks, it seems as if you already know my uncle.”

  Chapter 19

  When Sarah struggled to open her eyes, the world as she knew it had changed forever. The dark shadows and foggy thoughts that had been her most recent life were now awash in bright, stark colors. A silence rang in her ears as she tried to remember where she was and why she was there. Her entire body ached, but the sensation was pleasantly distant. She knew there was discomfort, though she couldn’t really feel it until she tried to move. A wave of pain instantly overwhelmed her, rocking her world and threatening to engulf her back into darkness. Suddenly, the most basic needs seemed impossible as she fought for a breath.

  “Hey...hey, Sarah, it’s okay. ... Relax.” The voice was soothing, but the face was unfamiliar. “Look at me, Sarah. Come on. Look at me. Focus...focus, that’s it.”

  She didn’t want to look at anything. She just wanted to breathe, but she couldn’t even open her mouth. Trying to do so was like drowning, an experience she knew very well. Fighting the pain and the rising panic, she looked at the young woman standing next to her bed.

  “Sarah, look in my eyes. Look at me. My name is Robin,” she said with a comforting smile. “That’s it. Breathe slowly. In and out. See, you can breathe, but it has to be slowly,” Robin said encouragingly.

  Robin was right, she was breathing.

  “Do you know where you are?”

  Moving only her eyes, Sarah looked around the room, recognizing nothing other than that it was a hospital.

  Robin watched her face for a sign of recognition of the horror she had been through, but all she got was a blank stare — until Sarah tried to move her lips.

  She wanted to say no, but it felt like someone was trying to rip her lips from her face.

  “Shhh, shhh, no talking for right now, okay? You can’t open your mouth because your jaw is wired. You’ve had a pretty rough time.”

  The confusion on Sarah’s face was easy to see despite all the swelling and stitches. “You’ll be okay, Sarah, but for now, close your eyes and get some rest.”

  It was too hard to fight, so she did as she was told. Soon Sarah’s face relaxed. It didn’t take long for her to slip back into the peace of her medicated slumber.

  ♥

  Much later, Sarah’s eyes opened again and Robin offered her usual smile. “Good afternoon. Feeling a little better?”

  This time Sarah knew better than to try to answer. The fog in her mind had cleared enough to recall her last attempt.

  Robin picked up her patient’s arm and located her pulse, then saw Sarah’s questioning look. “You know where you are?” Robin could tell by the look in Sarah’s eyes that she did. “Do you know why?” The uncertainty was clear. “You don’t remember, do you?” There was anguish in Sarah’s pain filled eyes. “You were attacked.” She watched for a response, but there was none. Robin looked over at the nearby tray to confirm there was a syringe filled with a powerful sedative. Some of the patients she had cared for over the years had reacted badly when the realizatio
n of their changed life hit home.

  “You were attacked by a very bad man, Sarah. He’s not here. You’re safe now, Sarah.”

  Robin reassured her over and over, but Sarah’s mind was working on its own. Her memories and fears flashed in her swollen, blackened eyes. I remember...I remember a room — I remember pain. Sarah attempted to move her left hand, but she couldn’t, and she looked to make sure it was still there. It was. So why can’t I move it, or even feel it?

  “You need to rest now, Sarah. Things will look better in the morning.”

  Slowly, with fierce determination, Sarah began to raise her right hand toward her face.

  “No, no, that’s not a good idea.”

  Sarah’s eyes searched the room, but she didn’t see what she was looking for.

  “What is it? You want something?”

  With a thick, dry tongue and a jaw with limited movement, she couldn’t even moisten her swollen lips. “M...” But the simple letter was more than her sore lips and throat could handle.

  “What is it...a mmm...” Robin looked around the room to see if she could understand her patient, and then it came to her. “A mirror?” Sarah’s eyes told her she had hit it on the button. “Sorry, dear, there are no mirrors in here.” The nurse saw the determination grow in Sarah’s eyes. The injuries to her throat were life threatening, but the scars to her face would be life altering, especially if she saw them now. “Sorry, Sarah, you’re just going to have to wait. You’ll look better in a few more days, I promise.” Robin reached for the needle. Popping off the protective cover, she injected the sedative into Sarah’s IV tubing. “You need to rest now.” Robin smiled down at her as the medication began to work.

  Sarah looked into the nurse’s eyes, searching for the truth of how she appeared to others. It’s always in the eyes. The thought rang in her ears as she felt herself starting to drift. Who said that?

  Sarah’s mind began to wander into a field of tall green grass.

  “You rest, and when you wake up, I’ll be here.”

  Robin’s words came through the fog, but as she began to float away, the words found a connection to a memory. High, snow covered mountains, a lake, as words floated into her mind... Take all the time in the world. When you are ready, I’ll be here.

  Abby... It was Abby. ... Where is Abby? The question was there in her mind, but the powerful drug took her away from all conscious thought.

  ♥

  “Docket number 022765, the People versus Abigail Stanfield.”

  The judge looked up at hearing the detective’s name. As far as he was concerned, Abby should have just shot the bugger and then dumped his miserable body in the ocean. Judge Howard M. Porter locked eyes with Abby. “Detective.” It was almost a question.

  Though handcuffed, she nodded with respect to the judge. “Your Honor.”

  Porter turned his attention to the sharply dressed, distinguished gentleman to her right. He was more than a little startled to realize Abby’s lawyer was none other than the infamous Nathan Holoman. “Counselor, I haven’t seen you in a courtroom for a long time. I was under the impression you had retired.”

  “I had, Your Honor, but when my client called me about this grave injustice, well, I had to come to see what my esteemed colleagues were up to.”

  The exchange going on between the accused, her lawyer, and the judge visibly upset Assistant DA de Barr. “Excuse me, Your Honor, but this isn’t a high school reunion. Miss Stanfield is charged with a heinous, violent crime. She isn’t here as an officer of the law.”

  “And might I remind you, Mr. de Barr. That this is my courtroom and you would do well to watch your offhanded comments,” the judge said with annoyance. de Barr opened and closed his mouth. “All right, then, let’s carry on,” the judge said with a wave of his hand.

  Flipping through one of the files, de Barr pulled out a sheet and read the charges from it. Nathan leaned over and whispered something to Abby just as Lincoln entered the courtroom. Her friend gave her a wink and a thumbs up before Abby turned her attention back to the proceedings.

  “How do you plead, Miss Stanfield?”

  “Not guilty, Your Honor,” Abby said clearly.

  “Very well. Trial is set for,” he flipped through his book and exchanged murmured conversation with his clerk, “the last week of September.” He looked for any opposition; there was none. “Good.”

  Nathan stood, a legal pad in his hands, “As far as bail goes, Your Honor, I ask that—”

  “Your Honor, due to the viciousness of the crime and the financial resources of the accused, the People are asking that the accused be remanded without bail,” the assistant DA interjected quickly.

  “No bail?” Nathan’s voice rose in protest. “Your Honor, my client is a member of this city’s police force, not to mention a respected and valued resident of the community in which she lives.”

  “Miss Stanfield was a member of this city’s police force, but was forced to surrender her badge as a result of these charges. She also no longer has a permanent residence within the city. The People will show that not only did Miss Stanfield torture and murder Mr. Ward, but she was obsessed with trying to prove him guilty of crimes he did not commit. I will prove she used her financial resources, as well as those of the police department, to further manipulate the case against— ”

  “Enough, Mr. de Barr. I’m not trying this case right now, we’re discussing bail. Counsel approach.” He waved both of them forward as he covered the microphone at the front of his bench.

  “Ronald, you can’t be serious. You honestly believe Abby is a threat to society or a flight risk?”

  “I do. When you see what she was capable of, how brutally the victim was murdered.”

  “Your Honor, she hasn’t been found guilty of anything and they are already punishing her. Abby has deep roots in this community. Her life is here.”

  “Correction, Your Honor, her life was here. She no longer has a home here, or a job, or family. She has the money and the power to go along with her resources. I mean, hey, she got you out of retirement Nathan.”

  “Ronald, that’s enough,” the judge scolded.

  “Your Honor, just because my client is financially secure does not mean she is a flight risk. She isn’t about to run out of town on the first bus.”

  “Really?” de Barr said mockingly as he produced a file folder from behind his back. “Then what do you call this?” He opened the file and a plane ticket fell out onto the judge’s bench. Porter picked it up, and then quickly held up his hand to silence Nathan’s argument as he turned the ticket around.

  “First class to Buenos Aires,” the judge read. “Where did you get that?” Nathan asked.

  “It was found in Miss Stanfield’s vehicle,” de Barr answered pompously.

  Porter remained silent as he examined the ticket.

  “Recess for ten minutes.” He slammed his gavel down and quickly departed.

  Assistant DA de Barr turned to gloat, but Nathan was already heading back to Abby who looked confused. Lincoln had made his way up to the front of the courtroom and was coming through the gates. Abby looked from one to the other, wanting to hear what they both had to say.

  “What the hell’s going on? They aren’t going to grant me bail because I’ve got money. What kind of bullshit is that?”

  “It’s more complicated than that. Abby, whether or not you did this is not my immediate concern, but if you intend to leave the country I need to know, and I need to know now.”

  “What? No!” Her voice raised beyond a hush. “That’s nuts. Why would I run? Besides, where am I going to run to?” she asked in disbelief.

  “Argentina,” Nathan answered without a blink of his eye. “Buenos Aires, to be exact.”

  This time it was Lincoln who objected. “What?”

  “de Barr just dumped a first class plane ticket on Porter’s desk.”

  Abby looked around the courtroom in disbelief. “What? From where? It’s not mine.”


  “They found it in your Jeep.” Nathan shook his head. “I won’t ask again.”

  “You don’t have to. I didn’t buy any ticket! I’ll put up whatever security they want, everything I still own.”

  “That may not be enough, Abby,” Nathan said. “That airline ticket really hurt us.”

  “I didn’t buy any plane ticket. Why would I?”

  “Okay, okay.” He reached for his briefcase and started to flip through the numerous files inside, looking for Abby’s financial statements.

  Abby turned back to Lincoln, “Did you see her?”

  “Yeah, but she’s pretty out of it.” Abby closed her eyes. “On a different note, I got to talk to Brian Malfessto, the editor of the paper, and he agreed to send me copies of the original articles.”

  “Have you looked at them yet?” Nathan asked as he glanced over at Lincoln.

  “I haven’t had a chance to.” He turned his attention back to Abby. “Abby, I’ve been thinking.”

  “About?” she asked.

  “A call I got a while back from Frank Sabatini.” He saw the question on Nathan’s face. “He was the father of one of the girls Ward murdered.”

  “What kind of call?” Abby asked.

  “Somehow he found out we had Ward in custody.”

  Abby’s eyes darkened and she frowned. “How did he find that out? That wasn’t public knowledge.”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Is this Sabatini guy a person of interest, or could he be a suspect?” Nathan asked.

  “Well, he’s was definitely angry enough, and he hinted that he had friends with connections.”

  “What kind of connections?” Nathan asked.

  “The kind that deals in cement shoes,” Lincoln said wryly.

  Abby added, “Cement shoes, or a rapist’s gag order.”

  “As in Billy’s gag?” Nathan asked with concerned curiosity.

  “Like I said, Sabatini said he had friends...” Lincoln’s voice trailed off as he saw the door to the judge’s chambers open.